Papa John's founder John Schnatter will testify Oct. 1 in a lawsuit seeking key documents from the pizza chain that ousted him.

A Delaware judge ruled last week against Papa John’s International's request to dismiss Schnatter's motion seeking to compel the company to produce documents connected to his ouster as chairman and details related to claims of sexual harassment by top managers.

The Court of Chancery of Delaware scheduled a one-day trial, and Schnatter is listed as the only witness.

Schnatter sued in late July in Delaware, where the company is registered, after he was forced to resign as chairman following a scandal that erupted after he admitted using the N-word during a media training session.

His lawsuit demands a string of internal emails and documents ranging from late October 2017 to last July.

On Oct. 1, he is expected to testify about why he's entitled to several categories of documents related to company directors, executives and consultants' fiduciary duties.

During a meeting of the parties last week, Judge Andre Bouchard told company lawyers that it's their burden to show that there's an improper purpose for Schnatter to seek the documents.

"Due process 101 is usually somebody is entitled to see the evidence that's going to be used against him so he's not ambushed at trial ... So why shouldn't you just answer the interrogatory and lay out your cards on the table?" Bouchard asked Papa John's lawyers, according to court records.

The company, the world's third-largest pizza chain, has argued that the request for an array of social media accounts, archived emails and computer hardware and software is costly and burdensome.

"We have already provided John Schnatter all of the materials he is entitled to as a director and will not be distracted by his misstatements, words and actions," the company said in a statement Monday, the same thing it said in response to the lawsuit's filing in late July. "There is nothing he’s entitled to that he hasn’t already received. This is being dealt with through the appropriate legal channels."

Garland Kelley, a lawyer for Schnatter, told the Courier Journal that the company's statement is misleading. "For the company to say that he's been given everything he's asked for is ridiculous."

A second suit brought by Schnatter that alleges breach of fiduciary duty by CEO Steve Ritchie and members of the company's board of directors is still pending in Delaware.

After an earnings update in August, the company's stock lost about half of its value compared to a year before. It closed slightly above $45 a share Friday.

The company has estimated it will spend up to $50 million to conduct an internal cultural meeting with franchisees and employees around the country and revamp the brand.

In one of the rebranding changes, the company is dropping the apostrophe from its name. The grammatical tweak is designed to show that John Schnatter no longer controls the business, according to Ad Age, a trade publication that reported the logo change last week.

Papa John’s International filed paperwork about the new punctuation and brand imagery with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in late August.

The revised logo was filed in various versions, including one that features red and green and another with the chain’s catchphrase, “Better Ingredients. Better Pizza.”

A company spokeswoman said Monday that there are no imminent plans to use the logo and that the reasons cited by news outlets for dropping the possessive are all "speculation."

Erik Gordon, clinical assistant professor at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business, told CNN he sees the dropped apostrophe as a subtle dig at Schnatter.

Papa John's International marked the opening of its 3,000th store by giving away fresh tomatoes and pizza slices in New York.-
-CEO Nigel Travis and Chairman John Schnatter also took part in a ceremonial opening of Nasdaq Stock Market trading as part of the festivities, and the company donated $20,000 and fresh produce to City Harvest, an organization that feeds the hungry in New York. Copyright 2005 The Courier Journal, No Courier Journal

Papa John's Pizza founder John Schnatter told Anchorage residents at a special meeting that he plans to build a walking trail from the center of the city to E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park, regardless of whether the city sells him the five-acre Bellewood property. Photo by Chris Otts April 2007.
*date of photo is unknown Chris Otts/The Courier Journal

Papa John's Founder, Chairman and CEO John Schnatter gets a kick out of seeing his image on the NASDAQ tower in New York's Times Square, Friday, Sept. 14, 2012, while celebrating the opening of the brand's 4,000th global restaurant. Diane Bondareff/AP Image

Papa John's founder John Schnatter salutes another board member before the start of the Wednesday meeting to decide Tom Jurich's fate at the University of Louisville. - Oct. 18, 2017 Matt Stone/The Courier Journal

Papa John's Pizza founder John Schnatter talks with other board members after the University of Louisville Wednesday. Schnatter did not speak during Wednesday's meeting. Previously he brought up concerns with the University of Louisivlle athletic department. April, 26, 2017. Matt Stone/CJ

John Schnatter speaks during a press conference at the Louisville Zoo on Thursday morning. Thanks to a $1 million gift from the John H. Schnatter Family Foundation, the zoo's Leadership Campaign exceeded it's goal of $10.4 million for a final raised amount of $11.44 million. -Feb.9, 2017 Michael Clevenger/The Courier Journal

John Schnatter looks over renderings of a new exhibit on Thursday morning at the Louisville Zoo with Zoo Director John Walczak. Thanks to a $1 million gift from the John H. Schnatter Family Foundation, the zoo's Leadership Campaign exceeded it's goal of $10.4 million for a final raised amount of $11.44 million. -Feb. 9, 2017 Michael Clevenger/The Courier Journal

John Schnatter speaks during a press conference at the Louisville Zoo on Thursday morning. Thanks to a $1 million gift from the John H. Schnatter Family Foundation, the zoo's Leadership Campaign exceeded it's goal of $10.4 million for a final raised amount of $11.44 million. -Feb. 9, 2017 Michael Clevenger/The Courier Journal